Tag Archives: elections

In this pregnant pause before the beginning of the next administration, I find myself deciding that I need to vent. I need to shout out those things that redden my sight with rage and bring fear to my heart. Not just to voice them, but to exorcise them. I want to identify the causes and look at defenses, solutions, and alternatives. From today forward you will find me here, sharing my thoughts and hopes and fears. With any luck, some of you will join me. Together we can find that path to that future that we hope for – not the one that they have planned.

It’s time for me to rant again. For once, though, I find myself enthusiastic and upbeat. Yesterday afternoon John McCain did something extraordinary and courageous. He chose a running mate that actually gets me excited about voting this year. Her name is Sarah Palin and she is Alaska’s Governor.

For years John McCain has styled himself a maverick and a reformer. Unfortunately, many of us with strong feelings regarding the non-living nature of the constitution have been disappointed with his eagerness to please the other side of the aisle. It is one thing to look someone in the eye with whom you disagree and with strong conviction and moral certitude to try and convince them of the righteousness of your ideals. It is quite another to abandon all but the slimmest of your goals in exchange for the opposing side’s shallow thanks as they advance an agenda that counters the very principles you declare are your core. Compromise is where both sides relinquish some of their demands in order to facilitate good governance.

I have struggled and bemoaned a seeming lack of certitude on the part of the Senator from Arizona. Convictions are not the things of compromise. Compromise on spending the tax dollars of hard-earned Americans on this project or that or not at all is one thing. Do not compromise on the philosophies you proclaim are dear to your heart – lower taxes, smaller government, ethics, border and national security, clean sustainable energy as well as energy policy that will lead to lower prices and less dependence on foreign supplies. These are the Senator’s stated principles yet we have seen him in the past to be all too willing to “compromise” with the left to accomplish only meager gains. In my eyes, there has been too much paid for far too little received. I have feared that this trend would continue in any future McCain administration.

This fear has lifted today. I find myself excited that Senator McCain chose not to select a compromise candidate to appease the left and earn their “respect”. If they can’t respect an honest-to-God American hero as he is now, there is nothing he can ever do to earn it from them in the future except by abandoning all the principles he has proclaimed and adopt theirs. Instead, the Senator has chosen a like-principled person with the steel and resolve to help hold the course on these ideals.

I first heard of Governor Palin a few months ago while commiserating with a friend the decision by Senator Fred Thompson to leave the presidential race. We talked for several hours on whether the legacy of Reagan has been forgotten forever. We asked if America had lost the will to govern itself and would fall into the self-loathing and anti-individualism that is at the core of the modern liberal movement, Would America finally become the land of the “what’s in it for me” and the home of the “I’m not to blame”? Our conclusion was that it wouldn’t on our watch; not while we can still speak out in defense of the ideals that this country was founded on.

So, the conversation turned to who could take up the torch for America as she was meant to be. For quite some time the conversation centered on the newly elected Governor of Louisiana – Bobby Jindal. He is a principled, honorable man with great ideas and the guts to get them into play. His personal story is amazing and should resonate with many people who find the direction that we find ourselves heading in today disturbing if not alarming. Unfortunately for those of us not in his state, he is committed to finishing the job he has been ably doing for the citizens of Louisiana. Overcoming the state’s history of political corruption and ineptitude is a Herculean task and will not be done for years.

Once we had eliminated Bobby Jindal as a possibility, I heard a name that I had heard only once before in passing from a friend that lives in Alaska. That name was Sarah Palin. Intriguing as the idea was and as compelling as she and her story are, I never imagined seeing her on a national ticket. Many may instantly assume I say this is because she is a woman – that is not the case. In American politics we almost never see the right person in the right job. There are too many competing interests and outside demands that keep the perfect person from getting the nod. But, for only the second time since I became eligible to vote for President over 20 years ago, I see the right person up for the job.

Don’t get me wrong, I am still not a McCain cheerleader. I disagree with the Senator on several issues (not as many as I do with the current President however). The choice of Sarah Palin though has reassured me that the issues that will affect the future of America most – national defense, constructionist federal judges, realistic energy policy – will be taken seriously and handled intelligently.

You will hear much bout Governor Sarah Palin in the coming weeks as the Democrat party tries to come to grips with their weaknesses in the face of her candidacy. Be smart and research for yourself. read up on her background, her record, and her principles. If you do, you may find yourself as impressed and as excited as I am.

How much of this country can we give away? All I am hearing during this presidential election cycle is “we’re gonna give you this” and “everyone should have that”.

First principles… America was founded on ‘freedom to’ not ‘freedom from’.

You have the freedom to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. You do NOT have the right to not be offended. You do NOT have the right to live without responsibilities. You do NOT have the right to make other people feel or share your pain. Hell, these aren’t even worthwhile aspirations. These are symptoms of the democratic disease.

When the founders of this country spoke of democracy it was with all the disdain they could muster. Democracy is weak and selfish. Democracy is the lynch mob. The few with loud voices can call a herd and guide it with their hate, greed, and envy all for their own sense of power and importance.Governance is a deliberative process. Knee-jerk reactions to the baying of the mob only ensure that many more of us will find ourselves kicked in the nethers by that same knee.

The representatives of the people can bring the causes and concerns of their constituents before their fellow legislators and debate the merits of the issues. However, where is the check on this feeding-frenzy? In the early days of this nation the Senate represented the interests of the individual states and provided a real check on the overgrowth of our federal government. To ensure that these senators represented their states, each state had the ability to determine how these senators were to be chosen. Some were selected by the state legislatures, some appointed by their governors, and yes, a few were directly elected.

However, after the civil war, the constitution was amended to force senators to be elected directly by the populations of their respective states. The result of this has been an exponential growth in the federal government as the states have had no advocate in the halls of congress. Both houses are now filled with the vainglorious and power-hungry who only advocate for their own reelection.

So, democracy is now the rule and not the nightmare. The public has figured out that they can vote for ‘freedom from’ instead of working with ‘freedom to’. They have voted themselves a trough from which they can feed and feed and feed. Forget that the meal has to be made by someone. Damn the ever shrinking number of cooks and farmers and all the rest that work to make the food. The herd has discovered that their feed is in the ballot box.